SS Twickenham Ferry
Encyclopedia
Twickenham Ferry was a train ferry built in 1934 for the Southern Railway
. She served during the Second World War as a minesweeper
and returned to merchant service post-war, serving until 1974 when she was scrapped.
She was powered by four Parson's
turbines
, which were built by Parson's. Steam was supplied by boilers made by Yarrows Ltd, Scotstoun
. The four turbines drove twin screw propellors through single reduction gearing. She had a service speed of 16 knots (31.4 km/h). They had a total power output of 948 nhp (3,300 kW).
Twickenham Ferry could carry 12 sleeping car
s or 40 goods wagons, with space for 25 cars. Accommodation was provided for 500 passengers.
as yard number 1446. Launched on 15 March 1934, completion was in July. Jointly owned by the Southern Railway
& Angleterre-Lorraine-Alsace, she was built for service on the Dover
- Dunquerque route, but initially operated out of Southampton
as the new facilities at Dover were not ready. Her port of registry was London
and the code letters
GWTQ were allocated. On 22 September 1936, she was reflagged to France
. Her port of registry was changed to Dunquerque and her code letters were changed to FOSA. Twickenham Ferry commenced service between Dover and Dunquerque on 6 October 1936. She served on this route until 25 August 1939.
The next day, Twickenham Ferry was requisitioned by the Admiralty
as HMS Twickenham. Her port of registry was changed to London and the code letters BCYF were allocated. She was re-allocated the Official Number 163500. She was converted to a minesweeper
, and initially based at Southampton. She was put into service between Larne
and Stranraer
from July to December 1940, and again from March 1941 to January 1944. By November 1944, Twickenham Ferry was employed in taking locomotives to Calais
being able to carry 16 locomotives and 16 wagons. She could also carry an ambulance train of 14 carriages and four wagons., with the associated personnel. On 24 January 1945, HMS Twickenham was involved in a collision with the tug
Empire Rupert 10 nautical miles (18.5 km) off Dover (51°03′N 1°32′E). Empire Rupert sank.
On 31 October 1945, HMS Twickenham was returned to Angleterre-Lorraine-Alsace and regained her former name of Twickenham Ferry. She was the first Southern Railway ship to enter Cherbourg post-war. In 1947, Twickenham Ferry was converted from coal
to oil
burning. On the formation of British Railways in 1948, Twickenham Ferry was registered to the British Transport Commission
. With the introduction of IMO Numbers, Twickenham Ferry was allocated the number 5371478. With the introduction of TOPS
in 1968, Sealink
ships were classed as locomotive
s for TOPS purposes, being allocated Class 99
. Twickenham Ferry was allocated 99 006. She was withdrawn from service in 1974 as her boilers were life-expired. Her final day of service was 5 May 1974. On 24 May, she was sold for scrap, arriving on 26 May at San Esteban de Pravia
, Spain
, where she was scrapped by Stellnortem.
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
. She served during the Second World War as a minesweeper
Minesweeper (ship)
A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
and returned to merchant service post-war, serving until 1974 when she was scrapped.
Description
Twickenham Ferry was one of three ships built to the same design. Her sister ships were and . She was 346 in 8 in (105.66 m) long, with a beam of 60 in 7 in (18.47 m). She had a depth of 18 in 2 in (5.54 m) and a draught of 13 in 6 in (4.11 m). She was 2,839 GRT, 1,044 NRT, and 1,200 DWT.She was powered by four Parson's
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company was a British engineering company based in Wallsend, North England, on the River Tyne.-History:The company was founded by Charles Algernon Parsons in 1897 with £500,000 of capital, and specialised in building the steam turbine engines that he had invented for...
turbines
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
, which were built by Parson's. Steam was supplied by boilers made by Yarrows Ltd, Scotstoun
Scotstoun
Scotstoun is a historic district of Glasgow, Scotland, west of Glasgow City Centre. It is bounded by Yoker and Knightswood to the west, Victoria Park, Broomhill and Whiteinch to the east, Jordanhill to the north and the River Clyde to the south...
. The four turbines drove twin screw propellors through single reduction gearing. She had a service speed of 16 knots (31.4 km/h). They had a total power output of 948 nhp (3,300 kW).
Twickenham Ferry could carry 12 sleeping car
Sleeping car
The sleeping car or sleeper is a railway/railroad passenger car that can accommodate all its passengers in beds of one kind or another, primarily for the purpose of making nighttime travel more restful. The first such cars saw sporadic use on American railroads in the 1830s and could be configured...
s or 40 goods wagons, with space for 25 cars. Accommodation was provided for 500 passengers.
History
Twickenham Ferry was built by Swan, Hunter and Wigham Richardson LtdSwan Hunter
Swan Hunter, formerly known as "Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson", was one of the best known shipbuilding companies in the world. Based in Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, the company was responsible for some of the greatest ships of the early 20th century — most famously, the RMS Mauretania which...
as yard number 1446. Launched on 15 March 1934, completion was in July. Jointly owned by the Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
& Angleterre-Lorraine-Alsace, she was built for service on the Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
- Dunquerque route, but initially operated out of Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
as the new facilities at Dover were not ready. Her port of registry was London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and the code letters
Code letters
Code letters were a method of identifying ships before the introduction of modern navigation aids. Later, with the introduction of radio, code letters were also used as radio callsigns.-History:...
GWTQ were allocated. On 22 September 1936, she was reflagged to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Her port of registry was changed to Dunquerque and her code letters were changed to FOSA. Twickenham Ferry commenced service between Dover and Dunquerque on 6 October 1936. She served on this route until 25 August 1939.
The next day, Twickenham Ferry was requisitioned by the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
as HMS Twickenham. Her port of registry was changed to London and the code letters BCYF were allocated. She was re-allocated the Official Number 163500. She was converted to a minesweeper
Minesweeper (ship)
A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
, and initially based at Southampton. She was put into service between Larne
Larne
Larne is a substantial seaport and industrial market town on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland with a population of 18,228 people in the 2001 Census. As of 2011, there are about 31,000 residents in the greater Larne area. It has been used as a seaport for over 1,000 years, and is...
and Stranraer
Stranraer
Stranraer is a town in the southwest of Scotland. It lies in the west of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire.Stranraer lies on the shores of Loch Ryan on the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland...
from July to December 1940, and again from March 1941 to January 1944. By November 1944, Twickenham Ferry was employed in taking locomotives to Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
being able to carry 16 locomotives and 16 wagons. She could also carry an ambulance train of 14 carriages and four wagons., with the associated personnel. On 24 January 1945, HMS Twickenham was involved in a collision with the tug
Tugboat
A tugboat is a boat that maneuvers vessels by pushing or towing them. Tugs move vessels that either should not move themselves, such as ships in a crowded harbor or a narrow canal,or those that cannot move by themselves, such as barges, disabled ships, or oil platforms. Tugboats are powerful for...
Empire Rupert 10 nautical miles (18.5 km) off Dover (51°03′N 1°32′E). Empire Rupert sank.
On 31 October 1945, HMS Twickenham was returned to Angleterre-Lorraine-Alsace and regained her former name of Twickenham Ferry. She was the first Southern Railway ship to enter Cherbourg post-war. In 1947, Twickenham Ferry was converted from coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
to oil
Fuel oil
Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the generation of heat or used in an engine for the generation of power, except oils having a flash...
burning. On the formation of British Railways in 1948, Twickenham Ferry was registered to the British Transport Commission
British Transport Commission
The British Transport Commission was created by Clement Attlee's post-war Labour government as a part of its nationalisation programme, to oversee railways, canals and road freight transport in Great Britain...
. With the introduction of IMO Numbers, Twickenham Ferry was allocated the number 5371478. With the introduction of TOPS
TOPS
Total Operations Processing System, or TOPS, is a computer system for managing the locomotives and rolling stock owned by a rail system...
in 1968, Sealink
Sealink
Sealink was a ferry company based in the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1984, operating services to France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Channel Islands, Isle of Wight and Ireland....
ships were classed as locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s for TOPS purposes, being allocated Class 99
British Rail Class 99
The British Rail Class 99 was a fleet of 14 ferries, mostly owned by Sealink, which carried rail vehicles between Britain and mainland Europe. When British Rail implemented the TOPS system for managing their operating stock, these ships were incorporated into the system in order to circumvent some...
. Twickenham Ferry was allocated 99 006. She was withdrawn from service in 1974 as her boilers were life-expired. Her final day of service was 5 May 1974. On 24 May, she was sold for scrap, arriving on 26 May at San Esteban de Pravia
San Esteban de Pravia
San Esteban de Pravia is one of two parishes in Muros de Nalón, a municipality within the province and autonomous community of Asturias, in northern Spain.- Population :...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, where she was scrapped by Stellnortem.